Free admission • Multiple locations
The 22nd annual World Music Festival is your passport to musical acts from around the globe.
This free, city-wide festival, typically held in September, features over 60 artists from 25 countries at 20 venues, including Millennium Park and the Chicago Cultural Center, bringing even more diversity to Chicago’s already rich performing arts scene.
This festival embraces well-known stars and emerging artists in genres that range from traditional to contemporary. You can hear everything at the World Music Festival — from Indian classical music to Bulgarian bagpipes and Congolese funk. More than 650,000 concert-goers and 650 artists have visited the festival since it began in 1999.
Check out the 2019 World Music Festival lineup:
Friday, Sept. 13 – Saturday, Sept. 14
Ragamala – A Celebration of Indian Classical Music
Chicago Cultural Center
Preston Bradley Hall, 3rd Floor South
78 E. Washington St.
6 – 7:15 p.m.: Josh Feinberg, Kunal Gunjal, and Amit Kavthekar
7:45 – 9 p.m.: Akshara Music Ensemble
9:30 – 10:45 p.m.: Jay Gandhi and Nitin Mitta
11:15 p.m.– 12:30 a.m.: Prasanna, Patri Satish and Samyuktha Sreeram
1 – 2:30 a.m.: Nandkishor Muley and Ambi Subramaniam with Mahesh Krishnamurthy and Raj Deshmukh
3 – 4:30 a.m.: Roopa Mahadevan, Rajna Swaminathan and Arun Ramamurthy
4:45 – 6 a.m.: Samarth Nagarkar with Amit Kavthekar and Vikas Falnikar
6:15 – 8 a.m.: Saraswathi Ranganathan with GS Rajan, Patri Satish and Ganapathi Ranganathan
Saturday, September 14
¡SÚBELO! – A Celebration of Pan Latin Music and Culture
Pirulo y la Tribu (Puerto Rico), Los Wembler’s de Iquitos (Peru), Centavrvs (Mexico)
Millennium Park, Jay Pritzker Pavilion
201 E. Randolph St.
3 – 7 p.m.
Lucibela (Cape Verde) | Girma Bèyènè and Akalé Wubé (Ethiopia| France | USA)
The Promontory
5311 S. Lake Park Ave. W.
6 p.m. doors open, 7 p.m. show
21+
Sunday, September 15
Girma Bèyènè and Akalé Wubé (Ethiopia| France | USA)
Khalil El’Zabar Ethnic Heritage Ensemble (Chicago, USA)
Constellation
3111 N. Western Ave.
7 p.m.
21+
Wednesday, September 18
The Englewood/Soweto Exchange (Chicago | South Africa)
Jeremy Dutcher (First Nation/Canada)
Old Town School of Folk Music
The Gary and Laura Maurer Hall
4544 N. Lincoln Ave.
7 p.m.
Thursday, September 19
Jeremy Dutcher (First Nation/Canada)
American Indian Center
3401 W. Ainslie St.
7 p.m.
Lankum (Ireland)
Yandong Grand Singers of China (China)
Beverly Arts Center
1309, 2407 W. 111th St.
7 p.m.
Friday, September 20
MABANG! (China)
Yandong Grand Singers of China (China)
Ping Tom Memorial Park
300 W. 19th St.
5 p.m.
Lankum (Ireland)
Irish American Heritage Center
4626 N. Knox Ave.
7 p.m.
Saturday, September 21
MABANG! (China)
DePaul University
Holtschneider Performance Center
Mary Patricia Gannon Concert Hall
2330 N. Halsted St.
7 p.m.
Ikebe Shakedown (New York, USA)
Ana Munteanu (Moldova | USA)
Martyrs’
3855 N. Lincoln Ave.
8 p.m.
21+
AfrotroniX (Chad | Montreal, Canada)
KOKOKO! (Democratic Republic of Congo)
Chop Shop & 1st Ward Events
2033 W. North Ave.
9 p.m.
21+
Sunday, September 22
Global Peace Picnic
In commemoration of the International Day of Peace
The Garifuna Collective (Belize | Central America)
KOKOKO! (Democratic Republic of Congo)
Hermán Olivera y su Orquesta (New Jersey, USA)
Humboldt Park Boathouse
1301 N. Sacramento Ave.
2 – 6 p.m.
Wednesday, September 25
HaitianDansCo (Haiti)
Gurdjieff Ensemble (Armenia)
Old Town School of Folk Music, The Gary and Laura Maurer Hall
4544 N. Lincoln Ave.
7 p.m.
Thursday, September 26
Les Filles de Illighadad (Niger) | Kim So Ra (South Korea)
Sleeping Village
3734 W. Belmont Ave.
7 p.m.
21+
Friday, September 27
Gamelan Çudamani (Bali, Indonesia)
Harris Theater for Music and Dance
205 E. Randolph St.
6 p.m.
Tickets are required for entry. Reservations are encouraged, walk-up tickets will also be available on a first come, first served basis.
Saturday, September 28
Thomas Mapfumo & The Blacks Unlimited (Zimbabwe | USA)
Alsarah & The Nubatones (Sudan | New York City, USA)
Funkadesi (Chicago, USA)
Chief Boima (New York City, USA)
Concord Music Hall
2047 N. Milwaukee Ave.
9 p.m.
21+
Sunday, September 29
World Music Festival meets the World Dumpling Fest at Navy Pier
Fidel Nadal featuring Mr. Pauer (Argentina | Venezuela)
Alsarah & The Nubatones (Sudan | New York City, USA)
LowDown Brass Band (Chicago, USA)
Navy Pier
600 E. Grand Ave.
12 – 7 p.m.
Find details on artists, venues, and more at the official website and follow the festival on Facebook and Twitter @WMFChicago or with #WorldMusicFestChi.
